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The China Coal Industry Association on Tuesday called on coal miners to double down on ensuring coal supplies, stabilizing coal prices and strictly implementing the long-term coal supply contracts, as the country’s power consumption spiked amid ongoing heatwaves.
Coal firms should, in accordance with requirements by the top economic planner NDRC, prioritize coal supply to power generators, strictly implement long-term coal supply contract with power generators, maintain coal prices within a reasonable range, stabilize market expectations and promote long-term stable development of the coal market, said the association.
Earlier, the China Coal Industry Association and the China Coal Transportation and Distribution Association (CCTDA) had held a meeting on July 22 about coal market operations in the first half of the year, according to a statement released by the CCTDA on Monday.
Given the complex international situation and the expectations of domestic economic recovery, the major task for the industry in the second half of the year remains ensuring coal supply and stabilizing coal prices, according to the statement.
On Monday, the National Energy Administration (NEA) held a meeting on ensuring coal supply, requiring related government departments and major companies in the industry to guarantee stable coal supply, step up coal production, accelerate the released of advanced coal capacity, strengthen the implementation of long-term coal supply agreement with power generators and make good arrangements in coal imports.
The authority and the industry associations’ calls came as China’s electricity consumption surged amid wide-spread heatwaves. Peak power load of China Southern Power Grid reached 223 million kW at 15:23 on Tuesday, local time, rising by 2.99% or by 6.46 million kW from the peak power load last year, hitting a new record high, said the power grid.
China Southern Power Grid is one of two state power grids in China and covers five southern provinces – Guangdong, Guangxi, Yunnan, Guizhou and Hainan.
Driven by surging power consumption amid the ongoing heatwaves, daily thermal coal consumption at coal-fired power generators in China’s eight coastal provinces recently jumped above 2.2 million tonnes to hit a new record high.